ZIA CP010190 10371 (ZIA) | |||
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Title | Telomere length, cancer risk, and genetic determinants | ||
Institution | NCI, Bethesda, MD | ||
Principal Investigator | Savage, Sharon | NCI Program Director | N/A |
Cancer Activity | N/A | Division | DCEG |
Funded Amount | $43,572 | Project Dates | 05/01/2006 - N/A |
Fiscal Year | 2010 | Project Type | Intramural |
Research Topics w/ Percent Relevance | Cancer Types w/ Percent Relevance | ||
Aging (50.0%) Biochemical Epidemiology (45.0%) Cancer (100.0%) Childhood Cancers (10.0%) |
Brain (10.0%) Ovarian Cancer (30.0%) Pancreas (10.0%) Prostate (20.0%) Stomach (10.0%) |
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Research Type | |||
Cancer Related Biology Endogenous Factors in the Origin and Cause of Cancer |
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Abstract | |||
determine if TL is a risk factor for cancer. We evaluated with role of common genetic variants, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in TL regulation through analyses of SNP data derived from the NCI CGEMS GWAS of prostate and breast cancer. TL was determined on breast and prostate cancer cases and controls in collaboration with investigators at Harvard University. We found that 13 SNPs from 4 genes (MEN1, MRE11A, RECQL5 and TNKS) were associated with TL. The strongest findings were in MEN1, menin, which may function at the telomerase promoter. We are also collaborating with Harvard on a genome-wide association study of TL. TL in blood or buccal cells may be a biomarker of cancer risk. Our case-control studies suggest that short telomeres are associated with increased risk of ovarian and gastric cancer. A cohort study of TL and prostate cancer did not find the same association. We are currently conducting a meta-analysis of TL in blood or buccal cell DNA and cancer risk. This study is a compilation of all published association studies of TL and cancer. It will improve our understanding of the role that TL in surrogate tissues may play in cancer risk. We are also conducting several additional collaborative studies of TL and cancer risk. This includes a case-control study of glioma, a follow-up of our ovarian cancer study, and a study of pesticide exposures and TL in the Agricultural Health Study. A new study of TL and outcomes after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for severe aplastic anemia (SAA) is currently underway. This study will determine if donor and/or recipient TL is associated with HSCT-related complications including cancer, graft-versus-host disease, as well as pulmonary, and liver disease. |